'Nine eagle feathers in a County Cork park'

This is the title of a post by John Lawless on Bluegrass Today, and it's also the name of a new old-time tune composed by banjo-player Cameron DeWhitt and recorded by the Tall Poppy String Band, of which he is a member. The tune was inspired by the story behind the creation of the stainless-steel Alex Pentek sculpture 'Kindred spirits', commissioned by the town council of Midleton, Co. Cork; installed in Bailick Park, Midleton, in 2015; and officially unveiled and dedicated in 2017 by Chief Gary Batton of the Choctaw Nation, leading a delegation of twenty other Choctaw citizens.

The sculpture was inspired by the story of funds raised by the Choctaw people in 1847 to alleviate the famine in Ireland. The band, who will have an album out later this month, can be seen and heard playing the tune on the Bluegrass Today feature and on YouTube.

© Richard Hawkins